No More CDs or DVDs but "Holographic Memory"

Okay guys, I'll wait you until you stop saying "WOOOOOOOW~" for the title ;)

So here's my 1..2...4.. ah! my 6th post actually about the latest technology and its impact for the society. Just read it out :)

Technology Holographic Memory is basically utilizing the light to store data and reload data or information. This technology uses 3D holographic images to store more information in a smaller space and offer faster data transfer. It uses the volume of the recording medium for storage, instead of only the surface area. So they called it store in 3D.

Actually devices that use the light to store and read data has been famous for nearly two decades, CD (Compact Disc) for example. CD allows you to store multi-megabytes of data. Then an improved version of the CD, called DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), which enabled the storage of full-length movies on a single disc. These conventional storage mediums meet today's storage needs. In order to increase storage capabilities, scientists are now working on a new optical storage method, called Holographic Memory.

This is how Holographic Memory works, this technology uses holograms which are created when a light from a LASER beam is split into two beams; the signal beam or objects beam (which carries the data) and the reference beam (which designed such easy and simple to be reproduced as used as a reference). In holographic storage, at the point where the reference beam and the data carrying signal beam intersect, the hologram is recorded in the light sensitive storage medium.

Adapted from Inphase Technology, when you create a variance in the reference beam angle then hundreds of unique holograms can be recorded in the same volume of material. To read the stored holographic data, the reference beam is deflected off the hologram reconstructing the stored information. This hologram then projected onto a detector that reads the entire data page of over one million bits at once.

Prof. Yohanes Surya said when this technology has been successfully completed, we could save hundreds of our favorite movies only in a medium with the same diameter of a regular CD or DVD. Soon the entire contents of the books in library can be stored in a small device, so that we can have a mini encyclopedia that the content may be more complete than the content in library. (WOOOOOOOOWWWW~) We can also store and listen to thousands of our favorite music only in a small device. Moreover, the data reading process is performed in high speed (fast transfer rates). So that the society can save their money to buy a new storage medium.

Name : Figlenia Tirta
Lecturer's Name : Adityo Pratomo
Campus : Surya University

References :

[1] http://www.i-techmagazine.com/wawasan_iptek/artikel_teknologi/ys_artikel_teknologi/holographic_memory.pdf

[2] http://computer.howstuffworks.com/holographic-memory.htm